Rebel Rewind: Ole Miss Regresses in 2004 Following Eli Manning Departure

The Ole Miss Rebels experienced a high in 2003, but they found some new lows the following season.

Feeling nostalgic? You've come to the right place.

Over the next three weeks, The Grove Report is taking a look back at the Ole Miss Rebels' football seasons from 2003 to the present day. Why begin with 2003? I'm glad you asked.

For one, it provides a nice 20-year baseline (give or take) from the 2023 season that just concluded. It also happened to be the senior year of Eli Manning, providing a nice look at multiple eras of Ole Miss football in the process.

Yesterday, we took a look at the 2003 season, and today, we turn the page to 2004.

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Replacing a Legend is Difficult

Time and time again, this proves to be the case in sports. With Eli Manning's departure following the 2003 season, Ole Miss now had a hole to fill at quarterback, and it went with a three-pronged answer at the most important position on the field. Here is the cast of characters for the fall of 2004:

Ethan Flatt (So.) -- Nashville, Tenn.

Michael Spurlock (Jr.) -- Indianola, Miss.

Robert Lane (Fr.) -- Monroe, La.

Of these three, Flatt would see the most playing time, but all of them would be called upon to attempt to alleviate the loss of Manning. As the saying goes, "When you have two quarterbacks, you have none." I assume the same applies when you have three quarterbacks.

'Wake Me Up When September Ends'

This time, I don't mean the song by Green Day.

The first month of the season was a bad one for Ole Miss in 2004, starting the campaign 1-3 with the lone win coming in overtime against Vanderbilt at home. The Rebels suffered losses to Memphis (20-13) and Alabama (28-7) before taking down the 'Dores, and they followed it up with a trip to Laramie to face the Wyoming Cowboys on Sept. 25.

In that one, Ole Miss fell to its Mountain West opponent 37-32, putting an end to the month's struggles (only because that was the last game of September).

October Brings the Year's Best Win

The Rebels bounced back from their Wyoming loss and took down Arkansas State 28-21 on homecoming, but the following week brought the best day of the year for Ole Miss.

It was then that the Rebels faced No. 25 South Carolina in Columbia, and after a back-and-forth game, Ole Miss escaped with a 31-28 win thanks to a touchdown pass from Ethan Flatt with just over a minute to play. That brought the Rebels to a 3-3 record on the season and kept a realistic chance of bowl eligibility alive.

Falling Down the Stretch

Ole Miss would drop its next four games in the following fashion:

vs. No. 13 Tennessee (L 21-17)

vs. No. 3 Auburn (L 35-14)

at Arkansas (L 35-3)

at No. 14 LSU (L 27-24 OT)

The Rebels had officially missed out on becoming bowl eligible, but they were very close to keeping that hope alive had upset bids against Tennessee and LSU paid off. Now, Ole Miss would limp into an Egg Bowl matchup with an equally-hapless Mississippi State team.

That game gave the Rebels a positive note to conclude an otherwise lackluster campaign. Ole Miss captured a 20-3 win in Oxford to close out the 2004 season with a 4-7 record and a 3-5 mark in the SEC.

Rebel Rewind: Eli Manning Gives Ole Miss 10-Win Season in 2003

Year In Review

This season marked the end of the David Cutcliffe era in Oxford, and it was the first time the Rebels had missed out on a bowl game since 2001 and the first time they had a losing record under his watch. Ole Miss went 44-29 during his tenure as head coach, and while the 2004 season was objectively a failure, his firing ushered in a difficult period with the hiring of Ed Orgeron for the 2005 season.

Final Record: 4-7 (3-5 SEC)

Biggest Win: at South Carolina

Worst Loss: at Wyoming

Key Stat: Passing Touchdowns as a Team: 7